Prosecutors say knife-wielding MSU instructor killed colleague in unprovoked attack
A Missouri State University instructor is behind bars after police say he forced his way into a home on Wednesday night and stabbed his colleague to death in an affluent Springfield neighborhood.
Edward M. Gutting, 43, was charged Thursday with second-degree murder, assault, burglary and armed criminal action in connection with the killing of retired MSU professor Marc Cooper, 66.
Cooper's wife, Nancy, was also injured as police say she fought to get Gutting off of her husband.
Police said Nancy Cooper was at the hospital Thursday recovering from non-life-threatening injuries.
Gutting, meanwhile, is being held in the Greene County Jail on $1 million bond.
A probable cause statement, which serves as basis for criminal charges, was filed Thursday evening. It provides some insights into what prosecutors call an unprovoked attack.
The statement says Marc and Nancy Cooper were sitting inside their home at 635 E. University St. on Wednesday at 7:45 p.m. when Gutting came in through the back door wielding a large knife.
Gutting chased Marc Cooper through the kitchen into the living room, knocked him down and stabbed him to death, according to the statement.
Nancy Cooper was also cut several times as police say she tried to fight with Gutting — who jail records list at 6-foot-5, 225 pounds.
The statement says Gutting told Nancy Cooper at one point "it was between him and Cooper," and he didn't want to kill her — but he would if he had to.
Nancy Cooper was eventually able to call for help, and police were dispatched to the scene.
The first-arriving officers found Gutting walking in the street outside of the Cooper residence covered in blood, according to the statement. He was arrested without incident.
Charging documents do not provide any information about a possible motive for the killing.
Capt. Vance Holland with Springfield police addressed the media on Thursday afternoon. He said police were still working to determine the suspect's motive.
"We do believe we understand what happened," Holland said. "But we are still piecing together the why."
Holland said Cooper and Gutting knew one another but he could not say if they were friends.
The probable cause statement says Nancy Cooper identified Gutting as the man who attacked her husband. She said she had not met him before.
Missouri State University issued a statement saying Cooper was an emeriti history professor, and Gutting is an instructor of modern and classical languages.
The university said Gutting, who has worked at the university since 2011, has been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of this investigation.
Cooper, Gutting and Gutting's wife Angela Hornsby-Gutting worked in the history department together from 2011-2014, according to a Missouri State spokeswoman.
A bond recommendation from prosecutors says Hornsby-Gutting is not cooperating with police.
Attempts by the News-Leader to reach Hornsby-Gutting on Thursday were not successful.
Jason Jolley, Modern and Classical Languages department head, said he was shocked and saddened by the news.
Jolley said Gutting was scheduled to teach four general education courses this fall. Jolley said Thursday he is not sure what will happen to those courses now.
Cooper was an active member of Temple Israel, a Jewish synagogue in Rogersville.
Ray Weiner, president of the congregation, said Cooper was a friendly, soft-spoken man who would sometimes lead services when the rabbi was out of town.
"It's hard to imagine anybody having a conflict with him," Weiner said. "He came across as a very caring person in every dealing that I had with him."
Rabbi Barbara Block said Marc and Nancy Cooper were the first people to invite her over for dinner when she got to Springfield.
"He was a lovely, warm and greeting person," Block said. "He gave a lot to our congregation."
Former MSU professor Mark Rushefsky was close friends with Cooper and his wife, Nancy.
“I’m just in complete shock,” Rushefsky told the News-Leader. Rushefsky said he first met the Coopers in 1985 and they attended Temple Israel together.
Rushefsky said he does not know Gutting personally and he does not believe Cooper and Gutting were friends.
“Marc knew who (Gutting) was, but it didn’t go much more beyond that,” Rushefsky said.
Ken Burstin has been close friends with Marc Cooper for 35 years.
Burstin said he never heard Cooper mention Gutting before, and he did not believe the two men were close.
Burstin said he can't think of any reason why someone would want to harm Cooper.
"You talk about a person who would never have enemies," Burstin said. "He was such a benign individual."
Burstin said Cooper, who had one son, will be missed.
"It's a terrible loss, not only to the people who knew him, but the community at large," Burstin said.
Police ask anyone with information on this case to call the department at 417-864-1810.
Friday is move-in day at Missouri State and fall classes begin on Monday.
Cooper worked in Missouri State's history department from 1980-2014, and served as the managing editor of the eJournal in Public Affairs, according to a news release from the university.
“During his nearly 35 years on faculty, Dr. Cooper was an active scholar, publishing several articles on the cuneiform tablets of ancient Iraq, and his teaching specialty area was in the history of the Ancient Near East,” said Victor Matthews, dean of the College of Humanities and Public Affairs.
News-Leader reporter Alissa Zhu contributed to this report.
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